- Adrian Wojnarowski: The China Basketball Association has refused to give Wilson Chandler a letter of clearance to play immediately in NBA, sources tell Yahoo! Twitter
- Chicago Bulls star Derrick Rose has secured one of the richest shoe endorsement deals in history, a package that could pay him more than $200 million across the remainder of his career, a source told Yahoo! Sports. Yahoo! Sports
- Nash’s eighth All-Star trip at age 38 is remarkable as the oldest All-Star point guard — ever. But with a 14-20 Suns team, the interest in Nash’s career is what comes next in July free agency and speculation about the March 15 trade deadline. “It’s up to the team,” Nash said. “I’m happy where I am. I’m not happy with our record. I feel like I made a commitment to the fans and my teammates. But at the same time, I’d understand if the team wanted to make a move, so I’m completely open. To be honest, I just occupy myself with trying to prepare to play and play as well as I can.” Arizona Republic
- Sam Smith: I get a lot of trade proposals involving Boozer. OK, just about every trade proposal I get involves Boozer. It’s not going to stop, but he is not tradeable in any way because of the length and amount of his contract given the new labor deal and the new desire to cut payroll to avoid the luxury tax and pursue future free agency.Thirty year olds are out of vogue. Plus, Bulls management is satisfied with Boozer and will not do an amnesty, at least not for two years, in my view. So no more Boozer trades, OK? NBA.com
- But is there a good chance the Mavs can land both Howard and Williams? “If it happens, then it’ll be real, if it doesn’t, I guess it’s our imagination,” Williams, a native of The Colony, said Friday. Asked where he thinks he’ll be playing next season, Williams said: “I don’t know. I’m not thinking anything right now.” Howard also was side-stepping questions about his future. Instead, he chose to focus on the possibility — no matter how small — of the Magic winning an NBA title this season, instead of discussing the possibility of he and Williams teamming up with Dirk Nowitzki next season in Dallas “I think we’ve got an opportunity, just like every other team in the NBA, to win a championship,” Howard said of the Magic. “We just have to stay together, stay focused and go to work for the rest of the season.” Fort Worth Star-Telegram
- Irving was a perfect 8 for 8 from beyond the arc and finished with 34 points, helping Team Chuck beat Team Shaq 146-133 in the Rising Stars Challenge on Friday. Indiana’s George added 23 points but the night belonged to Irving, who picked up where another No. 1 overall pick left off in the NBA’s showcase game for its first- and second-year players. Wizards point guard John Wall earned MVP honors last season when he was a rookie. Irving said he couldn’t remember being so hot from the field. “No, it’s never occurred in my career,” he said. “You know, it’s kind of unfortunate that it comes in the All-Star game. These stats don’t carry over into the season. But at the end of the day, it was still fun to get out there with those talented guys. So it was a great experience.” ESPN.com